Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites

According to a European Commission report, around 675 000 tons of polyurethane foam waste is generated in Europe annually. Only 11 % of this waste is recycled, and the rest goes to landfills or is incinerated, so it is worth looking for new ways to treat or recycle it. This article examines the poss...

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Main Authors: Tubelis Jonas, Astrauskas Tomas, Dzikēvičs Miķelis
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Sciendo 2024-01-01
Series:Environmental and Climate Technologies
Subjects:
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.2478/rtuect-2024-0058
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author Tubelis Jonas
Astrauskas Tomas
Dzikēvičs Miķelis
author_facet Tubelis Jonas
Astrauskas Tomas
Dzikēvičs Miķelis
author_sort Tubelis Jonas
collection DOAJ
description According to a European Commission report, around 675 000 tons of polyurethane foam waste is generated in Europe annually. Only 11 % of this waste is recycled, and the rest goes to landfills or is incinerated, so it is worth looking for new ways to treat or recycle it. This article examines the possibilities of recycling such waste into sound-absorbing materials. With this paper, an alternative way to recycle polyurethane foam is proposed. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the acoustic properties of various polyurethane foam waste scraps in the production of mattresses, pillows, and other products and to assess whether such waste can be used as a basis for creating a sound-absorbing composite material. Research was performed using standard transfer function (ISO 10534-2) and transfer matrix (ASTM E2611) methods. Samples were formed in 3 different thicknesses: 1 cm, 3 cm and 5 cm. Polyurethane (PU) foam waste was used as the main material of the composite. The samples were bound using polyvinyl acetate. Measured parameters: normal incidence sound transmission loss and sound absorption. Sound absorption coefficient (SAC) values of different thickness composite samples reached up to 0.9 in frequencies higher than 1000 Hz (depending on thickness). Sound transmission loss (STL) values increase with thickness and reach 20 dB (5 cm thickness sample). Sound absorption results show that binding material quantity in the composite does not affect sound absorption and sound transmission loss negatively. The aim of this paper is to understand the binding material influence on acoustic properties of PU foam – polyvinyl acetate (PVA) composites.
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spelling doaj-art-a0c7f9e9b1374a8bb4d3d221f01e0eb72025-08-20T02:51:46ZengSciendoEnvironmental and Climate Technologies2255-88372024-01-0128110.2478/rtuect-2024-0058Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate CompositesTubelis Jonas0Astrauskas Tomas1Dzikēvičs Miķelis21Department of Environmental Protection and Water Engineering, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Saulėtekio al. 11, 10221 Vilnius, Lithuania2Research Institute of Environmental Protection, Vilnius Gediminas Technical University, Saulėtekio al. 11, 10221 Vilnius, Lithuania3Institute of Energy Systems and Environment, Riga Technical university, Azenes iela 12-1, LV-1048, Riga, LatviaAccording to a European Commission report, around 675 000 tons of polyurethane foam waste is generated in Europe annually. Only 11 % of this waste is recycled, and the rest goes to landfills or is incinerated, so it is worth looking for new ways to treat or recycle it. This article examines the possibilities of recycling such waste into sound-absorbing materials. With this paper, an alternative way to recycle polyurethane foam is proposed. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the acoustic properties of various polyurethane foam waste scraps in the production of mattresses, pillows, and other products and to assess whether such waste can be used as a basis for creating a sound-absorbing composite material. Research was performed using standard transfer function (ISO 10534-2) and transfer matrix (ASTM E2611) methods. Samples were formed in 3 different thicknesses: 1 cm, 3 cm and 5 cm. Polyurethane (PU) foam waste was used as the main material of the composite. The samples were bound using polyvinyl acetate. Measured parameters: normal incidence sound transmission loss and sound absorption. Sound absorption coefficient (SAC) values of different thickness composite samples reached up to 0.9 in frequencies higher than 1000 Hz (depending on thickness). Sound transmission loss (STL) values increase with thickness and reach 20 dB (5 cm thickness sample). Sound absorption results show that binding material quantity in the composite does not affect sound absorption and sound transmission loss negatively. The aim of this paper is to understand the binding material influence on acoustic properties of PU foam – polyvinyl acetate (PVA) composites.https://doi.org/10.2478/rtuect-2024-0058impedance tube measurementsnoise control sound absorptionsound transmission lossacoustic materials
spellingShingle Tubelis Jonas
Astrauskas Tomas
Dzikēvičs Miķelis
Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
Environmental and Climate Technologies
impedance tube measurements
noise control sound absorption
sound transmission loss
acoustic materials
title Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
title_full Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
title_fullStr Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
title_full_unstemmed Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
title_short Acoustic Properties of Recycled Polyurethane Foam Waste and Polyvinyl Acetate Composites
title_sort acoustic properties of recycled polyurethane foam waste and polyvinyl acetate composites
topic impedance tube measurements
noise control sound absorption
sound transmission loss
acoustic materials
url https://doi.org/10.2478/rtuect-2024-0058
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AT astrauskastomas acousticpropertiesofrecycledpolyurethanefoamwasteandpolyvinylacetatecomposites
AT dzikevicsmikelis acousticpropertiesofrecycledpolyurethanefoamwasteandpolyvinylacetatecomposites